Art21 Season Two Guide

2
art:21
ART IN THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY
EDUCATORS’ GUIDE TO THE SECOND SEASON

Art:21 Series Credits
Executive Producer: Susan Sollins; Series Producer: Eve Moros Ortega; Associate Producer: Migs Wright;
Director of Education and Outreach: Jessica Hamlin; Assistant Curator and Web Producer: Wesley Miller;
Production Manager: Alice Bertoni; Production Coordinator: Kelly Shindler; Development Associate: Sara
Simonson; Consulting Director (Stories and Loss & Desire): Charles Atlas; Producer (Time and Humor):
Catherine Tatge; Series Editors: Joanna Kiernan, Kate Taverna, Steven Wechsler; Educators’ Guide
Designer: Russell Hassell; Editorial Consultant: Marybeth Sollins; Broadcast Design and Animation: Open,
New York
Art:21 Education Advisory Council

Dale Allender, Associate Executive Director for Secondary Division for the National Council of Teachers of
English, Urbana, IL; Linda Christensen, High School Language Arts Coordinator, Portland Public Schools,
Portland, OR; Dipti Desai, Ph.D, Director, Art Education Program, New York University, New York, NY; AO
Forbes, Geography Teacher, The Colorado Rocky Mountain School, Carbondale, CO; Lori Georgi,
Educational Outreach Manager, WIPB, Ball State University, Muncie, IN; David Henry, Director of Education,
Rhode Island School of Design Museum, Providence, RI; Kim Kanatani, Director of Education, Solomon R.
Guggenheim, New York, NY; Juliet Myers, Acting Head of Education and Outreach, SITE Santa Fe, Sante
Fe, NM; Catherine Richmond-Cullen, Ed.D, Curriculum Specialist, Northeastern Educational Intermediate
Level Unit #19, Scranton, PA; Mary Ann Stankiewicz, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Art Education and
President of NAEA, University Park, PA; Carolyn Sutton, Director of Arts, The Park School, Baltimore, MD
Art:21 Advisory Council

Richard Andrews, Director, Henry Art Gallery, University of Washington, Seattle, WA; Bonnie Clearwater,
Director and Chief Curator, Museum of Contemporary Art, North Miami, FL; Kinshasha Holman Conwill,
Art, Museum, and Management Consultant, New York, NY; Lisa Corrin, Deputy Director of Art/John and
Mary Shirley Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, WA; Suzanne
Delehanty, Director, Miami Art Museum of Dade County, Miami, FL; Jennifer Dowley, President, Berkshire
Taconic Community Foundation, Great Barrington, MA; Richard Francis, Independent Curator, New York,
NY; Dana Friis-Hansen, Executive Director and Chief Curator, Austin Museum of Art, Austin, TX; Gary
Garrels, Chief Curator, Department of Drawings, Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY; Louis Grachos,
Director, AlbrightKnox, Buffalo, NY; Lynn Gumpert, Director, Grey Art Gallery, New York, NY; Kathy
Halbreich, Director, Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, MN; Martin Heiferman, Independent Curator, New
York, NY; Dave Hickey, Critic, Las Vegas, NV; Karin Higa, Director of Curatorial and Exhibitions, Japanese
American National Museum, Los Angeles, CA; Milena Kalinovska, Independent Curator, Chevy Chase, MD;
Katy Kline, Director, Bowdoin College Museum of Art, Brunswick, ME; Charlotta Kotik, Chairman of the
Contemporary Art Department, Brooklyn Museum of Art, Brooklyn, NY; Carin Kuoni, Independent Curator,
New York, NY; Margo Machida, Independent Curator, Brooklyn, NY; Merlee Kay Markishtum, Arts
Coordinator, Sacred Circle Gallery of American Indian Art, Seattle, WA.; Marti Mayo, Director, Contemporary
Arts Museum, Houston, TX; Jill Medvedow, James Sachs Plaute Director, Institute of Contemporary Art,
Boston, MA; John Ravenal, Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art, Virginia Museum of Fine Art,
Richmond, VA; Sarah Rogers, Senior Director of Communications, Center of Science and Industry,
Columbus, OH; David Ross, Beacon Cultural Project, Beacon, NY; Paul Schimmel, Chief Curator, The
Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, CA; Lowery Stokes Sims, Executive Director, The Studio
Museum in Harlem, New York, NY; Patterson Sims, Director, The Montclair Art Museum, Montclair, NJ;
Robert Storr, Rosalie Solow Professor Of Modern Art, Institute Of Fine Arts, New York University, New York,
NY; Judith Tannenbaum, Curator of Contemporary Art, Rhode Island School of Design Museum,
Providence, RI; Susana Torruella-Leval, Director Emerita, El Museo del Barrio, New York, NY
Funders
Public Broadcasting Service (PBS); Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB); National Endowment for
the Arts; The Allen Foundation for the Arts; Agnes Gund and Daniel Shapiro; Bloomberg; The Jon and
Mary Shirley Foundation; Non-Profit Finance Fund; JPMorgan Chase; The Andy Warhol Foundation for the
Visual Arts; The Horace W. Goldsmith Foundation; NYFA New York Arts Recovery Fund; Peter Norton
Family Foundation; Harvey S. Shipley Miller; Elizabeth Firestone Graham Foundation; The New York Times
Company Foundation; Nancy and Steven Oliver; and The Dorothea L. Leonhardt Foundation
Guide Credits
The Season Two Educators’ Guide was co-written by Stephanie Diamond and Jessica Hamlin in collabora-
tion with the Art:21 Education Advisory Council.
Copyright 2003 Art21, Inc.

The ‘See It On PBS’ logo is a trademark of the Public Broadcasting Service and is used with permission.
Raymond Pettibon, No title (Well you needn’t), detail, 1997. Acrylic on wall, approximately 168 x 360
inches. Installation at David Zwirner Gallery, New York. Courtesy Regen Projects, Los Angeles
Contents
introduction
2 Contemporary Art and Art:21
2 About the Series
3 About this Guide
3 About the Online Lesson Library
in the classroom
4 Connections to Specific Subject Areas
4 Education Standards
5 Starting the Conversation
themes
6 Stories
7 Loss & Desire
8 Time
9 Humor
artists
10 Eleanor Antin
12 Janine Antoni
14 Vija Celmins
15 Walton Ford
16 Trenton Doyle Hancock
18 Tim Hawkinson
20 Elizabeth Murray
21 Gabriel Orozco
22 Raymond Pettibon
24 Paul Pfeiffer
25 Martin Puryear
26 Collier Schorr
27 Kiki Smith
28 Do-Ho Suh
30 Kara Walker
resources
32 Glossary
33 Guide to Outreach & Related Resources
Back cover Online Lesson Library Site Map
art:21
introduction
contemporary art
and art:21 about the series
Contemporary art speaks directly to the important Opening Segments
Art:21—Art in the
questions of our time as well as to the changing Each program opens with an introduction
Twenty-First
landscape of American identity. By making new by a celebrity host (Jane Alexander, Margaret
Century is the first
ideas, current issues, and forgotten histories visible, Cho, Merce Cunningham, or John Waters)
broadcast series to
living artists show us new perspectives about our- who, while well known in each of their
focus exclusively on
selves and the world around us. As a reflection of respective fields of filmmaking, music, and
contemporary
contemporary society, the art of our time is relevant the theatre, is also passionate and knowledge-
visual art and to
to all subject areas and disciplines, and provides able about contemporary art. Artist Charles
present living
teachers and students a rich resource through Atlas created the program opening segments.
artists at work and
which to consider new ideas and rethink the familiar.
speaking in their
own words about
their lives, work,
and sources of
inspiration.
Themes
Left to right: Eleanor Antin, Each one-hour program has been curated like
Janine Antoni, Vija Celmins
an art exhibition and is loosely structured
Production stills, 2003
around a theme that enables viewers, students,
and teachers to analyze, compare, and contrast
the featured artists and their works. The work
presented in the series may cross the thematic
boundaries of each program hour and have rel-
evance to more than one theme. The Season
Two themes are Stories, Loss & Desire,
Humor, and Time.
“It’s about how you make representations
of your world, given what you’ve been given.”
—Kara Walker
2
about this guide
This guide is a companion to Season Two
of the television series Art:21—Art in the
Twenty-First Century and the Online
Lesson Library located on the Art:21 Web site,
www.pbs.org/art21/education. Art:21 encour- about the online
ages educators to use the Art:21 broadcast lesson library
series, the Educators’ Guide, and the Online
Lesson Library in tandem to integrate contem- www.pbs.org/art21/education
porary art and ideas into classroom discussion The Online Lesson Library expands on ideas
and community dialogue. presented in the Guide. Lesson plans suitable
for a single class period or an entire semester
Discussion Questions and Activities can be found by following the Web site
The Guide is designed to explore the featured links after specific questions and activities
artists’ ideas and artwork as well as related throughout the Guide.
themes and topics presented in the Art:21
series. The Guide suggests discussion ques- Topics
“The question tions (see Before Viewing and After Viewing Lessons are organized according to topics
always comes up. headings throughout) for use before and after that are based on the themes, ideas, and
screening series’ segments or engaging in artwork presented in the series. The following
Who’s using who? related activities. Before Viewing questions interdisciplinary topics are designed for use in
may also be used after viewing any segment Language Arts, Social Studies, and Visual and
Is it the image to elicit further discussion and dialogue. Many Performing Arts classrooms:
making us or do of the suggested discussion questions and
abstraction & realism
activities are accompanied by Web site links
home & displacement
we make the for lesson plans in the Online Lesson Library:
individuals & collectives
www.pbs.org/art21/education
image?” labor & craftsmanship
the natural world
—Paul Pfeiffer Glossary
public & private space
Selected vocabulary words have been high-
ritual & commemoration
lighted in bold print throughout this guide.
technology & systems
Definitions for these words can be found in
war & conflict
the glossary on page 32. A more comprehen-
sive glossary can be found on the Art:21 Web
A site map of the Online Lesson Library
site: www.pbs.org/art21
is located on the back cover of this Guide.
Left to right: Walton Ford, Additional Images on the Web

Trenton Doyle Hancock, Tim
Web sites with additional images by the artists
Hawkinson, Elizabeth Murray
Production stills, 2003 in this series are listed within each artist’s
section of the Guide, under the subheading
Additional Images on the Web. URLs are accu-
rate as of July 1st, 2003. All web addresses
should be verified before use in the classroom.
3
in the classroom
connections to specific education standards
subject areas
All Art:21 materials have been created to help
The Educators’ Guide and Online Lesson
your students achieve the national and state
Library are designed to bring the resources
education standards in Language Arts, Social
of contemporary art and artists to diverse
Studies, and Visual and Performing Arts.
classrooms.
The Online Lesson Library provides detailed

Language Arts
information about connections to the national
Looking at contemporary art and interpreting
standards as well as links to specific state
it provide significant opportunities for develop-
standards for all featured lesson plans. Follow
ing abilities in written and oral communication.
“I try to use tools the Web links throughout this guide for
Art:21 suggests ways to use contemporary
specific activities, lessons, and standards.
that everyone can art to enhance skills in visual and oral literacy,
self-expression, creative problem-solving,
use. I don’t want For more information about the national
writing, and critical thinking.
standards in all subject areas visit:
to be a specialist www.topicseducation.com/standards.htm
Social Studies
in techniques that Contemporary artists grapple with local, national
and international events in their work, bringing
are very difficult. creative perspectives to age-old issues and cur-
rent concerns. Sometimes controversial and
I prefer to be a
often provocative, artists engage ideas that are
beginner or an critical to the study of history, geography, psy-
chology, civics, government, and economics.
amateur in
Visual and Performing Art
many ways.”
The Art:21 series shows artists as real people
—Gabriel Orozco and presents a range of examples of what it
means to be an artist. Among the artists fea-
tured in the series are painters, photographers,
sculptors, and performance and video artists
who use a variety of media, materials, tools,
and processes to create their work.
Left to right: Gabriel Orozco,

Raymond Pettibon, Paul Pfeiffer,
Martin Puryear
“For me, making art is a byproduct of life. I don’t think I
make art just for art’s sake. It’s a product or residue of
my way of thinking and my belief system.”
—Do-Ho Suh
4
starting the
conversation
• Consider the questions: What is the definition

Season Two programs can be taped
of art and what is art about? What is the
off the air and used for educational
definition of creativity? How is artistic creativ- purposes at no cost for one year
ity similar to or different from creativity in from the date of the first national
science, business, law, or other areas? broadcast on September 9th and
10th, 2003. Check local listings as
• Discuss ideas about what contemporary art broadcast times may vary.
is, about what contemporary artists make,
and about what contemporary art looks like. For long-term use Art:21
“I’m not a videocassettes and DVDs can
Ask your students to describe the last work of
be purchased from PBS Video
contemporary art they saw. What made it
minimalist, I’m a 1-800-344-3337
contemporary: the time when it was made? www.shoppbs.org
maximalist. The the place where it was exhibited? the person
OR
or people who made it? the reason it was
Davis Publications
more you throw at made? Ask your students to describe their
1-800-533-2847
expectations of contemporary art and how it
www.davis-art.com
it the better.” might be different from art of other time peri-
ods. Compare and contrast ideas about con- The AV or school version of the
—Walton Ford temporary art with those from past eras such videocassettes from PBS includes a
as the Renaissance, ancient Egyptian civiliza- visible time clock in the corner of
the screen and contains an index
tion, the nineteenth century, etc.
that is annotated with start times
• Journal writing is often a good way to reflect to help teachers target and locate
specific content.
on ideas and themes, and to develop ideas
that can lead to discussion. Encourage your
Art:21 strongly recommends
students to write regularly in journals or
that teachers preview all videos
sketchbooks in order to keep notes, ques-
before showing them to deter-
tions, ideas, or pictures that relate to their
mine whether the content is
art-viewing experiences on an ongoing basis.
appropriate for viewing in their
• Encourage students to develop their powers particular communities or with
of observation and to learn by seeing. their students’ age group.
Challenge students to be as specific and
detailed as possible in their descriptions when
Left to right: Collier Schorr, looking at works of art or making observations

Kiki Smith, Do-Ho Suh, about artists. Encourage students to describe
Kara Walker
or reflect on what they’ve seen and to critique
and defend their opinions.
• Select specific artists or themes that are most

relevant to your curriculum or community. It
may be more suitable to focus on a particular
artist or program segment than on an entire
program. Within each program, the opening
segments are 2 minutes long and the artist
segments are 12 to 17 minutes long. 5
stories THE THEME
Many artists tell stories — autobiographical, fictional, satirical, or fantastical — in

their work. The artists featured in Stories do so through installation work, sculpture,
painting, printmaking, and drawing, inspired by sources as diverse as architecture,
literature, mythology, history, and fairytales. Working in a variety of materials, these
four artists provoke us to think about our own stories, the characters and carica-
tures, the morals and messages, and the beginnings and endings that define our
real and imagined lives.
F E AT U R E D A R T I S T S DISCUSSION
Trenton Doyle Hancock born 1974, Oklahoma City, OK Before Viewing
Kiki Smith born 1954, Nuremberg, Germany • What are the important stories that are told in our society today — in books,
Do-Ho Suh born 1962, Seoul, Korea
movies, pictures, music, the news, or by friends and family? Ask your students to
Kara Walker born 1969, Stockton, CA
consider — if they could personally guarantee a single story to be passed down to
future generations — what would that story be, what form would it take, and why?
• Why are some stories told, as opposed to others? Why do some stories continue to
be told over time while others are lost?
After Viewing
• Describe the connections between real-life events and fictional stories and characters
in the work of the artists featured in Stories hour as well those featured in Loss &
Desire, Humor, and Time. www.pbs.org/art21/education/abstraction/lesson1.html
• How do the artists featured in Stories hour use journals or sketchbooks in their
Left to right: Trenton Doyle artistic processes? Is a journal or sketchbook a work of art? Why or why not?
Hancock, Kiki Smith,
Do-Ho Suh, Kara Walker • How does the opening segment created by the artist Charles Atlas and filmmaker
Production stills, 2003 John Waters introduce different stories, both orally and visually?
ACTIVITIES
• Each artist in this hour describes an event or element in his or her childhood that
“I don’t want to resonates in current work. Ask your students to remember a time when they were
5, 10, or 15 years younger. Ask them to record, in a present-tense voice, the experi-
be so declarative. I’d
ences that were important at that time. How did they spend their days? What did
rather make something they dream about? What emotions did they feel? Ask each student to write a self-
that’s very open-ended description in his or her childhood voice, followed by a second description of that
that then can have a child from the point of view he or she has now. Compare the writing to examples in
literature or other popular media like films or songs that take a similar perspective.
meaning to me, but then
. . . somebody else can fill • The artists in this hour are all avid collectors of materials and objects, from bottle
caps to yearbooks to images from many periods of history. Ask your students to
it up with meaning . . . .”
collect found objects from different sources. What types of objects do they find in
—Kiki Smith the landscape as compared to other places, such as thrift stores or in their own
homes? Encourage them to consider different ways of categorizing and assembling
the objects; to create a social history of a particular time in their community based
on their collected “artifacts;” or to photograph or draw objects, creating a “found
object” exhibit.
6
loss & THE THEME
Thoughts and responses to themes of loss and desire surface in many areas of our lives,
desire from the philosophical to the emotional. In this program, specific works of art provoke us
to contemplate issues such as war and peace; questions about the nature of beauty; and
the age-old human longing for perfection, whether in the form of the games we create or
in the universe as we understand it through science and myth. References to history,
religion, and other art abound in the works and ideas presented in this hour.
Janine Antoni born 1964, Freeport Bahamas Before Viewing
Gabriel Orozco born 1962, Jalapa, Veracruz, Mexico • Discuss the word “loss.” Ask your students, either individually or in a group, to make a list
Collier Schorr born 1963, New York, NY
of as many kinds of loss they can think of. Repeat the exercise for the word “desire.” Can
we experience loss and desire at the same time or only separately?
• Great works of art, music, and literature often grapple with the themes of loss and desire.
Consider the range of emotions in sculpture, music, or drama from past to present. Think
about contemporary media — film, music, poetry, visual art, television, etc. — and consider
the different ways they might be used to effectively convey the theme of loss and desire.
After Viewing
• What feelings, other than loss and desire, are raised by the works of art presented
in this segment?
• Each of the artists in this section uses a wide range of media in art-making practices. How
do they decide what materials to use for each artwork? How do the chosen materials for a
piece affect the process of creating, the viewer’s response, and the environment in which
the artwork is displayed? www.pbs.org/art21/education/technology/lesson3.html
• Describe the similarities and differences in Schorr, Orozco, and Antoni’s work. Compare
and contrast their motivations and interests. Why have they been presented under the
theme of Loss & Desire?
• What creative choices did Charles Atlas make in the opening segment with Jane
Alexander? How do these decisions reflect the theme, Loss & Desire?
Left to right: Janine Antoni,

Gabriel Orozco, Collier Schorr
ACTIVITIES
“I try always to be • Consider the symbolic associations and meanings of using chocolate, lard, or soap as a
intimate with the world . . . medium for making art. Use one of the non-traditional materials featured in the Loss &
with everything I can, to Desire hour, or choose a completely different one, and create a work of art based on the
qualities of that material and the symbolic connections associated with it.
feel love for it, or interest
www.pbs.org/art21/education/technology/lesson3.html
in it. To be intimate you
• Each of the artists featured in the Loss & Desire hour create work that is intimately related
have to open yourself, to be
to memory. Create a work of art based on the memory of a particular event using objects
fearless, to trust what is related to that experience that can function as both an art medium and a metaphor for
around you . . . animate personal ideas about that memory and event.
and inanimate.” • Using found or drawn images compose a collage of symbols, objects, and colors that
—Gabriel Orozco represent the full range of the human experience of loss and desire. Will people who
speak a different language or have a different cultural background understand what your
collage conveys emotionally? Why, or why not?
7
time THE THEME
The element of time is always present in our interaction with works of art, whether
we sit to contemplate a painting for a few moments, stroll past a sculpture, or watch
a video piece for its entire duration. Some works of art are time-based in that the
viewer must experience them through the passage of time, as with music, while
others refer to time through links or references to art history or our collective human
history. For some, a work of art can make time seem to stand still.
Vija Celmins born 1938, Riga, Latvia Before Viewing
Tim Hawkinson born 1960, San Francisco, CA • How is time marked and recorded in different cultures?
Paul Pfeiffer born 1966, Honolulu, HI
Martin Puryear born 1941, Washington, D.C. • Discuss phrases that use the word “time,” for instance, time is money. What do
these phrases tell us about how our society conceptualizes time? Collect such
phrases from a variety of cultures or languages and discuss whether and how
they are similar to or different from each other.
• Interview friends and family about what time means to them. How are their
“A lot of my work
answers similar to or different from your own and from each other?
comes from an
• How do our perceptions of a work of art change over time? How do our “readings”
interest in how things
of a work of art change according to context or environment — in an art museum as
are made and how opposed to on the street, viewed by a child rather than an adult, etc.?
things are done. And
After Viewing
the way materials are • Describe the particular craft, artwork, or media of each of the artists featured in
manipulated and this hour. Explain why each artist was placed in the Time theme.
used . . . and the whole • For each of the artists featured in this hour, how has technology influenced and
history of that in changed the process and product of their art?
mankind’s past.” www.pbs.org/art21/education/technology/lesson2.html
—Martin Puryear • Do the artists in this segment make time visible? How?
• In the opening segment, the dancer Merce Cunningham performs a tap dance.
How does this dance and the video art created by the artist Charles Atlas to
accompany it, refer to the theme of Time?
Left to right: Vija Celmins,

Tim Hawkinson, Paul Pfeiffer, ACTIVITIES
Martin Puryear
Production stills, 2003 • Create or conceptualize two works of visual art, creative writing, or performance
that represent saving time, and the passage of time. What materials and methods
will you use for each representation?
• Create an artwork in any media that reveals what time means to you personally.
8
humor THE THEME
This episode explores the ways in which contemporary artists use irony, goofiness,
satire, and sarcasm. The artists profiled in this hour have been influenced by the
history of humor and comedy, including vaudeville, cartoons, and comic books.
Their works of art reveal how humor can stimulate laughter as well as serve as
a vehicle to explore serious, even painful subjects such as discrimination, colonial-
ism, war, and humanity’s impact on the natural environment.
Eleanor Antin born 1935, Bronx, NY Before Viewing
Walton Ford born 1960, Larchmont, NY • What is humor? What are the differences between sarcasm, satire, and irony?
Elizabeth Murray born 1940, Chicago, IL How are these terms related to humor and to each other?
Raymond Pettibon born 1957, Tucson, AZ
• Ask your students to describe the last humorous work of art or experience
they remember. What made it humorous?
• What are the limits of humor? What are the implications of using irony, satire,
or sarcasm when addressing issues of diversity, poverty, or homelessness?
Can humor hurt?
After Viewing
• Discuss how the works of art featured in this hour touch on elements of humor
in different ways.
• Discuss why the work of each of the artists featured in this hour might or might
not be considered humorous. Could these artists appear in other Art:21 themes?
Which ones?
• What is the difference between making an artwork that pokes fun at oneself and
one’s personal issues, and making fun of other people or issues not related to
one’s personal experience? How do the featured artists’ ways of addressing humor
relate to those differences?
Left to right: Eleanor Antin, • After viewing this segment, ask the Before Viewing questions for a second time.
Walton Ford, Elizabeth Murray,
Raymond Pettibon What roles can humor play in contemporary visual art, in other art forms, or in
Production stills, 2003 other subject areas?
ACTIVITIES
“I think that there’s • Have your students keep track of what makes them laugh over the course of a day
or a week, and make a chart identifying what kinds of humor inspire them to
almost no subject
laugh. Have them create an artwork, story, or performance that uses the various
matter that you can’t elements of humor they have collected.
treat with some
• Use different elements of humor, including satire, irony, and sarcasm, in a work of
humor, no matter how art to comment on a serious issue such as recent local or national political events
brutal it can seem.” or environmental issues. www.pbs.org/art21/education/abstraction/lesson2.html
—Walton Ford
9
Eleanor Antin
DISCUSSION
Before Viewing
Who makes history? How? Is there such a thing as a fictional history? What are the differences
and similarities between stories, myths, and history?
Born Role-play is an essential part of childhood. Ask your students to remember some of the
1935, New York, NY
roles they adopted when they were younger and some of their childhood interests, for
Education example collecting, drawing, singing, dancing, or acting. Do they still have these interests? In
BFA, City College of New York what ways have they changed or stayed the same, and how have they been influential?
Lives and Works What personal experiences can produce laughter and tears together?
San Diego, CA
After Viewing
Artist Biography In this segment, Antin creates the photographs from The Last Days of Pompeii by directing
An influential performer, filmmaker, and
a cast of technicians and actors. At one point she even calls herself a “dictator.” Observe
installation artist, Antin delves into his-
tory — whether of ancient Rome, the Antin’s method of directing or “dictating.” How is her method unique compared to other
Crimean War, the salons of nineteenth- artists in this series? www.pbs.org/art21/education/labor/lesson1.html
century Europe, or her own Jewish her-
Antin uses the term “pictorial narrative” to describe her work. What is a pictorial narrative,
itage and Yiddish culture — as a way to
explore the present. Antin is a cultural how does it relate to Antin’s work, and what are other examples of pictorial narratives in
chameleon, masquerading in theatrical or visual art or other media?
stage roles to expose her many selves.
This segment offers
Her most famous fictional persona is
that of Eleanora Antinova, the tragically the viewer a deeper
overlooked black ballerina of Sergei look at Antin’s
Diaghilev’s Ballets Russes. Appearing as motives for creating
Antinova and other characters in scripted The Last Days of
and non-scripted performances, Antin Pompeii photo-
has continually blurred the distinction
graphs. She com-
between her identity and that of
pares the fall of
her characters. In the process, she
has created a rich body of work Rome to current
including numerous films, photographs, conditions in the
installations, performances, and draw- United States. What
ings, as well as a fictitious memoir. are the current
Art:21 Theme
conditions in the
humor United States to
which she refers?
Online Lesson Library Topics What does Antin
abstraction & realism, individuals &
mean by making
collectives, labor & craftsmanship, war &
conflictz the comparison?
Will these photo-
Media and Materials graphs still convey
photography, film, performance, puppets,
the same meaning
drawing
when conditions
Influences change?
19th-Century Salon Painting, Greek and
Roman history and statuary, Yiddish culture Antin talks about
and heritage, paper dolls and puppets her interest in going
back in history to
Key Words and Ideas
witness particular
role-playing, performance, site-specific,
conceptual art, fluxus, pop art, feminism, events or figures.
colonialism, nationalism If you had the abil-
ity to go back in
Additional Images on the Web time, when, where
www.feldmangallery.com/pages/artists and whom would
rffa/artant01.html you visit?
www.eai.org/eai/artist.jsp?artistID=354 Detail from Before the Revolution, 1979. Installation at Ronald Feldman Fine Arts, New York. Left:
Karsavina, masonite figure on wheeled base, 54 x 30 inches; Right: Nijinsky, masonite figure on wheeled
base, 58 x 15 inches. Courtesy Ronald Feldman Fine Arts, New York
10
ACTIVITIES
Create an alter-ego for yourself and bring it to life in a cartoon or comic-book narrative,
or in the performance of a theatrical or filmed script.
www.pbs.org/art21/education/individuals/lesson3.html
Go to a museum or look through an art-history book. Study the art and culture of a
civilization or people who lived at least 100 years ago. Research the parallels between
that time and culture and our own. Create an artwork in the style of that culture that
highlights the parallels.
Ask students to select a character or figure from history and reinvent themselves by
merging aspects of their own identities with historical research about these characters.
Ask students to write a chapter from their memoirs using their new voices.
www.pbs.org/art21/education/abstraction/lesson1.html
The Angel of Mercy, 1977. Eleanor Antin, Myself 1854

(Carte de Visite) from The Nightingale Family Album.
One of 25 tinted gelatin-silver prints, mounted on hand-
made paper with text, 18 x 13 inches each. Courtesy Ronald
Feldman Fine Arts, New York
“I’ve always felt that

narrative is as much
of a human need as
breathing. We’re
constantly—even
if it’s a one-sentence
story—explaining
ourselves and
communicating in
terms of putting
material together that
in some way has
aspects of a story.
And narrative is how
we transform and
change into different
selves, into new
places in our lives,
and move back
and forth.”
The Golden Death, from The Last Days of Pompeii, 2001. Chromogenic print, 58⅝ x 46⅝ inches. Courtesy Ronald Feldman Fine Arts,
New York
11
Janine Antoni
DISCUSSION
Before Viewing
Discuss Antoni’s question, “Is it the artist who
gives the work power? Or is it the viewer?”
Born When viewing an artwork, do you need to know

1964, Freeport, Bahamas the story or the context behind the work in
order to understand it?
Education
BFA, Sarah Lawrence College, After Viewing
Bronxville, NY
Antoni says, “To me so much meaning is in how
MFA, Rhode Island School of Design,
we choose to make something, both in art but
Providence, RI
in all objects we deal with in our lives. That’s
Lives and Works why I do these extreme acts with my body. I
New York City feel that the viewer has a body too, and can
Artist Biography empathize with what I’ve put myself through to
Janine Antoni’s work often combines make the artwork.” How do you relate to her
both performance and sculpture. works of art? Would a female relate to these
Transforming everyday activities and ritu- pieces differently from a male?
als such as eating and bathing into ways
of making art, Antoni’s primary tool for Antoni uses garments and objects with impor-
making sculpture has always been her tant memories and histories from her friends Lick and Lather, 1993–94. 7 soap and 7 chocolate self-portrait busts,
own body. She has chiseled cubes of and family to construct the work Moor. She says Installation view: Hirshhorn Museum, Washington, D.C., Regarding Beauty
lard and chocolate with her teeth and exhibition. Collection of Jeffrey Deitch, New York. Courtesy the artist and
she is creating a piece that parallels her life and Luhring Augustine, New York. Photo by Lee Stalsworth
washed away the faces of soap busts
made in her own likeness. In the video,
Touch, Antoni appears to perform the
impossible act of walking on the surface
of water. She accomplished this magi-
cian’s trick after months of training to
balance on a tightrope that she then
strung at the height of the horizon line.
Balance is also a key component in the
related piece, Moor, in which the artist
taught herself how to make a rope out of
unusual and often deeply personal mate-
rials donated by friends and relatives.
Art:21 Theme
loss & desire
Online Lesson Library Topics

labor & craftsmanship, public & private
space, ritual & commemoration
Media and Materials

performance and sculpture using choco-
late, lard, found objects, cow hide, video
Influences
personal stories, Virgin Mary, Archimedes
and the discovery of mass, Classical art
forms, motherhood, the body
Key Words and Ideas

gender, autobiography, ritual,
performance
Additional Images on the Web

www.pbs.org/wnet/egg/205/
antoni/index.html
Lick and Lather (detail), 1993–94. 1 soap and 1 chocolate self-portrait bust, each bust: 24 x 16 x 13 inches. Courtesy the artist and Luhring Augustine, New
www.luhringaugustine.com York. Photo by Jon Bessler
12
her lifeline. How does this artwork relate to storytelling and what story or stories does the “I imitate fine art
work of art convey? www.pbs.org/art21/education/public/lesson1.html
rituals such as chiseling
The artwork Lick and Lather refers to historical and contemporary ideas about representation (with my teeth), painting
and gender. From what references does Antoni draw? Where have representations of gender
(with my hair and eye-
traditionally been found? Where else to we see representations of women that comment on
traditional ideas of gender? lashes), modeling and
molding (with my own
ACTIVITIES body) . . . ”
Ask your students to record the daily activities or rituals they perform; create a new ritual to
add to their routines; observe how the new ritual becomes integrated into the other rituals
they perform; and create a performance or documentation of the new ritual that considers
how daily rituals relate to identity. www.pbs.org/art21/education/ritual/lesson3.html
Antoni talks about making things with her mother and the rest of her family. She describes
her interest in the handmade and connections between an object and its maker. Adopt a
skill or craft from a family member or ancestor and use it to make a work of art.
www.pbs.org/art21/education/labor/lesson2.html
Moor (with details, right), 2001. Handmade rope made by materials donated to the artist by friends and family, 280 feet. Installation view: Magasin 3 Stockholm, Konsthall, Sweden, Free Port exhibition. Collection of Magasin
3 Stockholm Konsthall. Courtesy the artist and Magasin 3 Stockholm Konsthall
13
Vija Celmins
DISCUSSION
Before Viewing
Some artists choose to make multiple
works that use the same idea or sub-
Born ject matter in each piece. What are
1938, Riga, Latvia artists trying to accomplish by doing
this? Are there certain subjects or
Education
MFA, University of California, Los Angeles
motifs that recur within their work?
Lives and Works What is a visual illusion? What are

New York City differant ways to create illusion within
a 2-dimensional image like a painting,
Artist Biography drawing, or photograph?
Vija Celmins immigrated to the United
States with her family when she was ten After Viewing
years old, settling in Indiana. In the late When Celmins prepares her surfaces
1960s, Celmins began painting images that
for her paintings she states that this is
were clipped from newspapers, some of
part of the process of “building” a
which were of airplanes, which reminded
her of her childhood experiences of World painting. What does Celmins mean Untitled (Web 2), 2001. Mezzotint on Hahnemühle Copperplate paper, 18 x 14¾ inches.
Edition of 50, AP of 10. Published by Lapis Press, Los Angeles. Courtesy McKee Gallery,
War II. She later shifted her attention to when she uses the word “building” in New York
rendering scenes of nature copied from this context?
photographs — specifically photographs
that did not have a point of reference, Compare and contrast Celmins’s painting to scientific or journalistic photographs found in
horizon, or discernable depth of field. magazines or newspapers; Compare and contrast them to traditional landscape paintings
With a large palette of blacks and grays, from the 18th or 19th century. ww.pbs.org/art21/education/naturalworld/lesson2.html
Celmins renders vast, limitless spaces —
seascapes, night skies, and the barren
desert floor – with a remarkable accuracy, ACTIVITY
often working for months, and even years,
Celmins states that when time is taken to create a painting, the artist’s unconscious is
on a single image. A master of several
mediums, including oil painting, charcoal, allowed to seep into the painting. Choose an object and make two paintings of it. Spend
and multiple printmaking processes, one week to create one painting, and spend one hour to create the other. Then compare
Celmins has a highly attuned sense and contrast the paintings. Discuss the differences between these experiences.
for organic detail and the elegance of www.pbs.org/art21/education/technology/lesson1.html
imperfection.
Celmins often revisits specific places and images over time to create a long-term visual dia-
Art:21Theme logue. Consider the ways that artists have paid tribute to nature. Write and illustrate an ode
time
to a favorite place or landscape. www.pbs.org/art21/education/naturalworld/lesson1.html
labor & craftsmanship, the natural world,
technology & systems
Media and Materials

drawing, oil painting, charcoal, etching,
woodcut
Influences
found photographs and objects, World
War II, newspaper clippings, the ocean
Key Words and Ideas

realism, artificiality, surface
Additional Images on the Web Untitled (Big Sea #1), 1969. Graphite on acrylic ground on paper, 34⅛ x Untitled #13, 1996. Charcoal on paper, 17 x 22 inches. The Edward R. Broida
45¼ inches. Private collection. Courtesy McKee Gallery, New York Collection. Courtesy McKee Gallery, New York
www.cirrusgallery.com/exhibitions/
vijacelmins.html
www.mckeegallery.com/artists/
vija_celmins_img.html
“I think the meaning of the work is always
somewhat ambiguous and that people project
different things on it all the time.”
14
Walton Ford
DISCUSSION
Before Viewing
What are the ways an artist might alter a viewer’s impres-
sion of history?
Born What does realism mean and how might realism be unrealistic?
1960, Larchmont, NY
After Viewing
Education
MFA, Rhode Island School of Design,
What is colonialism, and what is the history of the term?
Providence, RI How do Ford’s paintings comment on colonialism?
Lives and Works Ford states that he is not a minimalist, but a maximalist.
Great Barrington, MA What do you think he means?
Artist Biography Many of the stories that have influenced Ford’s works are
Originally intending to become a filmmaker, sad and tragic. How does Ford’s use of satire and humor
Walton Ford later adapted his talents as a redefine the stories he is telling?
storyteller to his unique style of large-scale
watercolor. Blending depictions of natural
history with political commentary, Ford’s Compare and contrast how Ford’s attitudes about his
detailed paintings satirize the history of artwork are similar to or different from the views of the The Forsaken, 1999. Watercolor, gouache, ink, and
pencil on paper, 60 x 40 inches. Private collection,
colonialism and the continuing impact of
19th-century naturalists on which his artwork is based. New York. Courtesy Paul Kasmin Gallery
political oppression on today’s social and
environmental landscape. Inspired by a
family history that includes southern slave
owners, Ford is interested in confronting ACTIVITIES
these histories through the images he cre-
According to the symbolist system Ford has created in the work Nila, starlings bearing down on
ates. Each painting is as much a tutorial in
flora and fauna as it is a scathing indict- the elephant represent the Western tourist; the goldfinches who are working to plant flowers are
ment of the wrongs committed by nine- Peace Corps volunteers; and the woodpecker is the Westerner who goes to India to shop. Create
teenth-century “environmentalists” as well your own symbolist system. For whom will you create it, and what will your symbols be?
as contemporary American consumer cul-
ture. An enthusiast of the watercolors of Create an archive of images that depict the natural landscape and our relationship to the
John James Audubon, Ford celebrates the natural world. Categorize and organize it according to the major themes that surface in the
myth of the renowned naturalist-painter images you collect. www.pbs.org/art21/education/naturalworld/lesson2.html
while at the same time repositioning him
as an infamous anti-hero who, in reality, Have you ever felt attracted and repulsed simultaneously? Create an image or a piece of
killed more animals than he ever painted. creative writing that reflects this idea.
Each of Ford’s animal portraits doubles as a
complex, symbolic system, which the artist
layers with clues and anecdotes from the
literature of colonialism and folktales.
Art:21 Theme
humor

abstraction & realism, the natural world, war
& conflict
Media and Materials

etching, watercolor, gouache, and acrylic
painting
Influences
John James Audubon, naturalist memoirs
and illustrations, family history
Key Words and Ideas Falling Bough, 2002. Watercolor, gouache, ink, and pencil on paper, 60¾ x 119½ inches. Private collection, Tennessee. Courtesy Paul Kasmin Gallery
satire, heritage, homage, colonialism,
capitalism, symbolism, allegory
“A lot of my work deals in metaphor or allegory and discredited
Additional Images on the Web modes of communication. . . . It seems archaic. It seems to fit with
www.paulkasmingallery.com/artists/ my way of wanting to communicate.”
waltonford/works.htm
www.artnet.com/ag/fineartthumbnails. 15
asp?aid=6355
Trenton Doyle Hancock
DISCUSSION
Before Viewing
Think about objects you collect
or objects that are collected
Born by friends or family members.
1974, Oklahoma City, OK Where are items found for these
collections? How are they
Education
BFA,Texas A & M University,
stored? What are other types of
Commerce, TX collections people create? Why
MFA, Tyler School of Art, Temple University, do people make collections?
Philadelphia, PA
Have you ever had an epiphany?
Lives and Works How did you know, and what
Houston, TX was it like?
Artist Biography What is the difference between
Trenton Doyle Hancock has been drawing
a character and a caricature?
since the age of two. Hancock’s prints,
www.pbs.org/art21/education/
drawings, and collaged felt paintings tell the
story of the Mounds – a group of mythical individuals/lesson1.html
creatures that are the tragic protagonists of
After Viewing
the artist’s unfolding narrative. Additional
Hancock describes how he
figures such as Torpedo Boy, Loid, and
Painter are among the cast of characters organizes his belongings into
who propel the saga of the Mounds. mounds, stacks or piles. He also I See Things, 2002. Graphite and acrylic on paper, 11¼ x 11 inches. Collection of Stuart
Ginsberg, Chappaqua, New York. Courtesy James Cohan Gallery, New York
Influenced by the history of painting, and uses mounds as a motif in his
by abstraction, Hancock transforms tradi- artwork. What are the similarities
tionally formal decisions — such as the use and differences between the mounds in his physical space and the mounds in his art?
of color, language, and pattern — into
opportunities to create new characters, Hancock has many objects in his studio that once belonged to his family. He calls these
develop sub-plots, and convey symbolic objects “echoes,” and says that because they are in his presence the objects “echo” into his
meaning. Hancock’s paintings often rework work. How are these “echoes” apparent in his work? What are the important items that you
Biblical stories that he learned as a child.
have from your friends or family that create specific “echoes” for you?
Finding inspiration in his fascination with
language and color, Hancock has created How does the saga that Hancock is illustrating relate to mythology and myths passed down
volumes of work that detail these charac- through time? www.pbs.org/art21/education/rituals/lesson1.html
ters and the battle of good and evil.
Art:21 Theme
stories

abstraction & realism, individuals & collectives,
ritual & commemoration
Media and Materials

drawing, painting, collage, text, installation
Influences
music, superheroes, word play, childhood
toys, thrift stores, Philip Guston, comic books,
personal and family history, Biblical stories
Key Words and Ideas

epiphany, caricature, abstraction, collage

www.flatbedpress.com/gallery/prints/
gal_prints_body_main.asp
www.camh.org/cam_exhandprograms/
cam_archive/outoftheordinary/hancock.htm
Left: Studio Floor Encounter with Vegans 2, 2002. Graphite and acrylic on canvas, 31 x 31¼ inches. Right: Studio Floor Encounter with
Vegans 5, 2002. Graphite and acrylic on canvas, 31 x 31¼ inches. Courtesy Dunn and Brown Contemporary, Dallas
16
ACTIVITIES “I like to play with
language, word-play
Create a cast of characters. Think about what identity each character might represent (for
example, power, weakness, love). Assign each character a different color, pattern, material, and puns, allitera-
medium, or discipline that embodies its assigned identity. Make a creative forum for these tion and ono-
characters such as a screenplay, a story, work of visual art, a musical, or theatrical work. matopoeia, poetic
www.pbs.org/art21/education/individuals/lesson1.html
devices within the
Create a work of visual poetry that brings together storytelling, word play, and illustration. work . . . . I like to
Create a contemporary superhero/heroine. To what issues and values would this hero or pick language that
heroine be dedicated? Who would be his or her arch-enemy, or what would be his or her has a certain kind of
greatest challenge? What would his or her strengths and weaknesses be? What would his or
cadence, and words
her costume look like? Create that costume and a cartoon or comic narrative to illustrate
the hero or heroine’s experiences. www.pbs.org/art21/education/individuals/lesson3.html that have double
meanings, or maybe
Hancock’s images represent a creation myth of his own design. Have students read examples
of other creation myths from around the world and ask them to write and illustrate a creation words that, if you
myth representing their own emergence into the world as a real or fictional character. take a letter away,
www.pbs.org/art21/education/ritual/lesson1.html will be an opposite.”
Painter and Loid Struggle for Soul Control, 2001. Mixed media on canvas, 103 x 119 inches. Collection of the Jack S. Blanton Museum of Art, University of Texas, Austin, Texas
17
Tim Hawkinson
DISCUSSION
Before Viewing
Compare major innovations in technology
with how artists innovate in order to
Born make artwork. Is innovation always an
1960, San Francisco, CA advancement? What are the relationships
between the tools and skills of the past
Education
BA, San Jose State University,
and current technologies?
San Jose, CA www.pbs.org/art21/education/
MFA, University of California, Los Angeles labor/lesson2.html
Lives and Works Where and how do you find ideas for
Los Angeles, CA making art or other creative work?
Artist Biography After Viewing
Tim Hawkinson is known for creating What is the relationship between happen-
complex sculptural systems using surpris-
stance and intention in Hawkinson’s work?
ingly simple materials. As a child,
Hawkinson often made his own toys and Hawkinson uses a drill to draw with, gears
musical instruments. As an adult, and knobs to make music, wires to make
Hawkinson continues to tinker with
movements. Why has Hawkinson chosen
found objects and household tools to
these tools to create his work? How does
construct sculptures that are often
kinetic or mechanized. His installation the transformation of the traditional use
Überorgan — a stadium-size, fully auto- of these tools affect the process of the
Emotor, 2001. Mixed media: image, 49 x 36 x 4 inches; ladder, 27 x 24 x 19 inches; cable,
mated “bagpipe” — was pieced together work and the art that Hawkinson creates? 174 feet. Private collection. Courtesy Ace Gallery. Photo by Ace Gallery
from bits of electrical hardware and sev-
eral miles of inflated plastic sheeting.
Hawkinson’s fascination with music and
notation can also be seen in Drip, a work
in which he transformed the random pat-
tern of falling water into rhythmic,
“danceable” sounds. In the work Emotor,
Hawkinson used random electrical sig-
nals to create a kinetic collage that pro-
duces infinite variations of his own
features and apparent emotions.
Art:21 Theme
time

abstraction & realism, labor & craftsman-
ship, technology & systems
Media and Materials

sculpture, household objects, circuitry
and switches
Influences
musical instruments and sound,
machines, weather, portraiture
Key Words and Ideas

kinetic, ambient, mechanization, sound art

www.artseensoho.com/art/ace/
hawkinson99/hl.html
www.akiraikedagallery.com/
pe_hawkinson.htm
Überorgan, 2000. Woven polyethylene, nylon, net, cardboard tubing, various mechanical components, dimensions variable.
Installation view at Ace Gallery, New York, 2002. Collection of Ace Gallery. Courtesy Ace Gallery. Photo by Ace Gallery
18
Since childhood, music has played an important role in Hawkinson’s life. At one time he “Using images of
was interested in making musical instruments professionally. How has this interest translated myself or impressions
into his sculptures? of my body . . .
is just a way of using
ACTIVITIES a universal kind of
Transform a number of non-traditional art tools into tools for making artwork. stand-in for anybody
Create an artwork based on the functions of your new tools. that I hope other peo-
www.pbs.org/art21/education/technology/lesson3.html
ple can identify with.
Create or find an interesting sound using ordinary materials and perform or record it. Partner It’s not about my
with other students to compose a “found sound” musical composition.
identity; it’s about
Scale is important to Hawkinson’s work. Consider how scale changes our thinking about our identity and our
objects or works of art. How does making something significantly larger or smaller affect our
experiences within
thinking about it? Create a work of art or creative writing piece that reflects that understanding.
our bodies, and
our bodies’
relationship to the
external world.”
“There’s an organic
aspect in much of my
work that maybe has
to do with keeping
the ‘rules’ really open.
And there’s this
hand-made aspect in
a lot of the work that
just by nature creates
its own signature,
creates these organic
kinds of references.”
Drip, 2002. Polyethylene, vinyl, aluminum, mechanical components, water, dimensions variable. Collection of Ace Gallery. Courtesy Ace Gallery.
Photo by Ace Gallery
19
Elizabeth Murray
DISCUSSION
Before Viewing
What are the boundaries
between painting and sculp-
Born ture? How would you define
1940, Chicago, IL each of these processes?
Why is it important to those
Education
BFA, Art Institute of Chicago
who talk and write about art
MFA, Mills College, Oakland, CA to make distinctions
between different art forms?
Lives and Works
New York City Murray says “Everything’s
been done a million times.”
Artist Biography
Is it possible to make art
Elizabeth Murray’s distinctively shaped can-
vases break with the art-historical tradition that is completely new?
of the two-dimensional picture-plane. Why or why not?
Jutting out from the wall and sculptural in
After Viewing
form, Murray’s oil paintings and watercolors
playfully blur the line between the painting Murray uses words such as “funny,”
as an object and the painting as a space for “wacky,” “cartoony,” and “inflated,” to
depicting objects. Her still lifes rejuvenate describe her work. Make a list of words
old forms by masters such as Cézanne, that describe Murray’s work. What other
Picasso, and Matisse. Breathing life into words come to mind? Bop, 2002–03. Oil on canvas, 9 feet 10 inches x 10 feet 10½ inches.
domestic subject matter, Murray’s paintings Courtesy PaceWildenstein. Photo by Ellen Page Wilson
often include images of cups, drawers, For many painters, drawing is a “warm
utensils, chairs, and tables. These familiar up” or a sketch for a painting. Compare
objects are matched with cartoonish fingers Murray’s sketchbook drawings to her paintings. How does Murray’s process of translating a
and floating eyeballs. Abstraction is a key
drawing into a painting change the imagery and style of the work?
component in Murray’s work. Taken as a
whole, Murray’s paintings are abstract com- What personal stories does Murray tell through the objects and symbols she uses? What
positions rendered in bold colors and multi- kinds of feelings does Murray elicit by the abstraction of those objects?
ple layers of paint. But the details of the
paintings reveal a fascination with dream
states and the psychological underbelly of
domestic life. ACTIVITIES
Art:21Theme Bring together two or more different
humor
types of media to explore a new,
Online Lesson Library Topics hybrid medium, for instance, sculpture
abstraction & realism, labor & craftsmanship and painting, video and drawing, or
performance and installation.
Media and Materials
oil and watercolor painting, drawing www.pbs.org/art21/education/
labor/lesson3.html
Influences
Juan Gris, Paul Cézanne, Jasper Johns, Select a mundane object, an abstract
William DeKooning, Claes Oldenberg, shape, a still-life, or a landscape, and draw
household objects and shapes, cartoons, or paint it to convey different stylistic moods
and comics and characteristics such as wackiness, serious-
Key Words and Ideas ness, sadness, frustration, etc.
abstraction, domestic, shaped canvas Stirring Still, 1997. Oil on canvas on wood, 92 x 115 x 7 inches.
Courtesy PaceWildenstein. Photo by Ellen Page Wilson
www.artseensoho.com/art/pace/
murray97/murray1.html “I don’t like sentiment, and I don’t like nostalgia.
www.gregkucera.com/murray.htm And I think the humor has to be something really
goofy and really wacky. It can’t be cute.”
20
Gabriel Orozco
DISCUSSION
Before Viewing
Think of all the ways photographs are
used and displayed. What are the similari-
Born ties and differences between fine-art
1962, Jalapa, Veracruz, Mexico photographs and snapshots? Do these
“worlds”ever come together? If so, when,
Education
where, and how? www.pbs.org/art21/
National Arts Academy of Mexico
Circulo de Bellas Artes, Madrid, Spain education/war/lesson2.html
Lives and Works City streets or the natural landscape are

New York City, Paris, and Mexico City often an inspirational source for artists.
What objects and incidents do you
Artist Biography Horses Running Endlessly, 1995. Wood board: 34⅝ x 34⅝ x ¾ inches;
remember from a walk you took today? knights: 11¾ x 11¾ x 3½ inches each. Edition of 3. Courtesy the artist and
Gabriel Orozco is an internationally
respected artist without a studio who trav-
What objects and incidents do you think Marian Goodman Gallery, New York
els extensively exploring global cultures you overlooked? What held these objects
and trends. Orozco is known for his work or incidents in your mind? “What happens when you don’t
in multiple media: he is a photographer, www.pbs.org/art21/education/natural
have a studio is that you have to be
an installation artist, and a sculptor, but world/lesson3.html
does not consider himself a specialist or confronted with reality all the time.
expert in any particular field or technique. After Viewing
You have to be on the street, you
Orozco’s work is often apparently simple What and where are “in-between spaces”?
in subject, yet consistently tackles com- have to walk around.”
plex philosophical concepts. His interest Many artists combine the perspectives
in games, mapping, and complex geome- they have about the places where they
try is clear in works like the patterned were born or grew up with the places they
human skull of Black Kites, the curvilinear move or travel to later in their lives. How
logic of Oval Billiard Table, and the does Orozco merge different geographic
extended playing field of the chessboard
and cultural influences into his work?
in Horses Running Endlessly. Principally
using everyday materials and found
objects, Orozco reframes the urban land- home/lesson2.html
scape to challenge the viewer’s concep-
In his practice, Orozco does not desire to
tion of reality and consciousness. His
projects straddle the boundary between
create commodities, or to mimic capital-
art and everyday life. ism, but he admits to contradicting him-
self when he explains his need to
Art:21 Theme produce objects. Where is this contradic-
loss & desire
tion in his work? Discuss the possibility or
Online Lesson Library Topics impossibility of creating an art object that
home & displacement, the natural world, is not a commodity.
ritual & commemoration, technology &
systems
Media and Materials ACTIVITIES

photography, found objects, cars, clay
Orozco creates games that are based on
Influences his own rules and philosophies. Re-
everyday life, philosophy, games, daily walks invent an existing game by changing its Black Kites, 1997. Graphite on skull, 8½ x 5 x 6¼ inches. Collection of the Phila-
Key Words and Ideas rules and design. Consider how the new delphia Museum of Art: Gift (by exchange) of Mr. & Mrs. James P. Magill, 1997
displacement, specialization, game reflects your philosophies.

commodification, capitalism
Orozco’s segment opens as he is taking one of his daily walks. Use a daily walk to explore
Additional Images on the Web your familiarity with your immediate surroundings. Document your walk by using a camera,
www.carnegieinternational.org/html/
a journal, or other means. Create a collage or installation using the documentation you
art/orozco.htm have collected. www.pbs.org/art21/education/naturalworld/lesson3.html
www.yvonneforceinc.com/yfinew/ Transform a found object. Consider whether the modifications will enhance the intrinsic nature
orozco.htm of the object or disguise its original intention or function. Describe the method of abstraction,
camouflage, or alteration. Write a short story about the birth, life, and death of your object.
21
Raymond Pettibon
DISCUSSION
Before Viewing
Can a work of art be political if the artist’s
intentions are not political? Why or why not?
Born What is a motif and how are motifs used in
1957, Tuscon, AZ
visual art? In other disciplines?
Education
BA, University of California, Los Angeles
Cartoons we grow up with change from
generation to generation. What are the car-
Lives and Works toons that will represent your generation?
Los Angeles, CA How have the visual qualities of cartoon
Artist Biography characters and settings changed over time?
The fourth of five children, Raymond www.pbs.org/art21/education/
Pettibon earned a degree in economics abstraction/lesson2.html
and worked as a high-school math
teacher before launching a career as a After Viewing
professional artist. A cult figure among Pettibon says, “Gumby represents an alter-
underground music devotees for his early ego for my work as an artist . . . Gumby is a
work associated with the Los Angeles kind of metaphor for how I work. He actu-
punk rock scene, Pettibon has acquired
ally goes into the book, goes into a biogra-
an international reputation as one of the
phy or historical book, interacts with real
foremost contemporary American artists
working with drawing, text, and artist’s figures from the past, and he becomes part
books. Pettibon explores subjects as of it. He brings it to another direction.
diverse as surfing, themes from art history And I tend to do that in my work.” Compare
and nineteenth-century literature, and fig- this statement by Pettibon to Hancock’s
ures from American politics from the comments about Torpedo Boy. What is
1960s and contemporary pop culture. In
an alter-ego and why do you think artists No title (There is a touch of poetry . . .), 1997. Ink and watercolor on
the 1998 anthology, Raymond Pettibon: A paper, 16¾ x 8½ inches. Collection Zoe and Joel Dictrow, New York.
use alter-egos in their work? Courtesy Regen Projects, Los Angeles. Photo by Joshua White
Reader, the viewer can read over
Pettibon’s shoulder to discover a handful www.pbs.org/art21/education/
of the artist’s muses — Henry James, individuals/lesson3.html
Mickey Spillane, Marcel Proust, William
Blake, and Samuel Beckett, among others.
Art:21 Theme
humor

abstraction and realism, individuals and
collectives, labor & craftsmanship
Media and Materials

drawing, watercolor, text, installation
Influences
American identity, politics, autobiography,
Francisco Goya, James Whistler, John
Sloan, Edward Hopper, William Blake,
R. Crumb, punk rock, surfing, baseball,
popular culture, cartoons and comics,
Gumby, Biblical stories and figures, film
noir, Herman Melville, Allen Ginsberg,
The Scarlet Letter
Key Words and Ideas

motif, satire, burlesque

www.davidzwirner.com/
Raymond_Pettibon/index.html
No title (I must tell), 2002. Ink and watercolor on paper, 22½ x 30 inches. Courtesy Regen Projects, Los Angeles and David Zwirner, New York. Photo
www.ikonedltd.com/pettibon by John Berens
22
Raymond Pettibon, Installation view at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, 1999–2000. Courtesy Regen Projects, Los Angeles. Photo by Joshua White
What do you think Pettibon means when he says that presidents and political figures are “I don’t investigate
the “real cartoon characters?”
and find the right
To Pettibon, baseball is a microcosm of our society as a whole, and trains are quintessentially character that is
American. Do these motifs within Pettibon’s work enable you to see society and America in a
going to express the
different way? What are the motifs or symbols you would use to describe America?
way I want to do
In his segment, Pettibon’s mother talks about his work as “a thinking person’s art,” suggest-
things. But it starts
ing that Pettibon does not simply draw aesthetically pleasing pictures. Do you agree or
disagree? What in Pettibon’s art reflects your opinion? If he is not simply painting pretty inevitably with just
pictures, how would you describe what he is making? one drawing, and it
How does Pettibon use juxtaposition as a device for creating his compositions? resonates, and it
keeps going from
ACTIVITIES there.”
Transform a favorite text or portion of text into a work of art. Manipulate the words and
letters using different types of handwriting, photocopying, or Photoshop. Consider using a
variety of drawing styles and techniques to accompany your text.
Research the history of political cartoons and the use of symbolic imagery to comment
on the issues of the day. Create political cartoons that address political situations in your
school, town, city or country. www.pbs.org/art21/education/abstraction/lesson2.html
23
Paul Pfeiffer
DISCUSSION
Before Viewing
What transforms an athletic event into a spectacle?
How do you experience life in a “media-centric” world? What are the relationships between
A Born individual identity and identity mediated by technology and advertising? How are the inter-
1966, Honolulu, HI
sections and boundaries established between them?
Education
BFA, Hunter College
After Viewing
Whitney Independent Study Program What do you think Pfeiffer means when he states that
“I wonder
we live in a world of “perceptual overload?”
Lives and Works www.pbs.org/art21/education/technology/lesson2.html sometimes if
New York City
the reality of
Pfeiffer is interested in the relationships between religion, art history,
Artist Biography what’s on the
and human consciousness. He states that these ideas are intercon-
Although Paul Pfeiffer was born in
Hawaii, most of his childhood was spent nected. How do these interests surface in the content of his work? screen seems
in the Philippines. Pfeiffer’s groundbreak- How do they surface in the titles of his work? more real
ing work in video, sculpture, and photog-
In work taken from professional sports footage, Pfeiffer presents than people’s
raphy uses recent computer technologies
to dissect the role that mass media play images that address heroism, winning, and losing. How does lives.”
in shaping consciousness. In a selection Pfeiffer critique or comment on these ideas? Enter the mind of an
of his video works focusing on profes- athlete and consider how he or she feels in the spotlight, during
sional sports events — including basket- play, after play, after a win, or after a loss.
ball, boxing, and hockey — Pfeiffer
digitally removes the bodies of the play-
ers from the games, shifting the viewer’s ACTIVITIES
focus to the spectators, sports equip-
ment, or trophies won. Presented on What factors contribute to shorter- or longer-lasting public fame? If you were to have fifteen
small and large screens and often minutes of fame, what would you be famous for? Create a document in video or other media
looped, these intimate video works are that gives you those fifteen minutes. www.pbs.org/art21/education/public/lesson2.html
meditations on faith, desire, and a con-
temporary culture obsessed with In The Long Count (It Shook up the World), Pfeiffer has altered traditional uses of video edit-
celebrity. Several of Pfeiffer’s sculptures ing to erase the boxing figures. Consider the ways that Pfeiffer has pushed the medium of
include eerie, computer-generated recre- video beyond its original function. Using video equipment, photocopy machines, digital or
ations of props from Hollywood thrillers, film cameras, stretch their different functions beyond their traditional uses to create different
such as Poltergeist, and miniature diora- effects and images.
mas of sets from films that include The
Exorcist and The Amityville Horror.
Art:21 Theme
time

abstraction & realism, labor & crafts-
manship, public & private, technology
& systems
Media and Materials

digital video, media, and film images,
sculpture, photography, installation
Influences
mass media, basketball, hockey, boxing,
horror films, movie stills, popular culture
Key Words and Ideas

heroism, celebrity, media saturation,
spectacle, media art

www.broadartfoundation.org/ Poltergeist, 2000. Laser-fused polyamide powder, and wood, glass, The Long Count (Rumble in the Jungle), 2001. Digital video
collection/pfeiffer.html and linen vitrine, object: 4 x 4 x 8 inches; vitrine: 22 x 22 x 24 inches. loop, LCD monitor, DVD, player, and metal armature, 6 x 7 x 60
Edition of 3, AP of 2. Courtesy the artist and The Project, New York and inches. Edition of 6, AP of 1. Courtesy the artist and The Project,
geocities.com/icasocot/pfeiffer.html Los Angeles. Photo by Sheldon Collins New York and Los Angeles. Photo by Erma Eastwick
24
Martin Puryear
DISCUSSION
Before Viewing
What are the similarities and differences
between architecture and sculpture?
Born How might sculptors and architects
1941, Washington, D.C. influence each other?
Education
public/lesson2.html
BA, Catholic University, Washington, D.C.
MFA, Yale University, New Haven, CT After Viewing
Lives and Works Find examples of hand-made and
Hudson Valley, NY mass-produced objects. Compare and
contrast their sensory and practical
Artist Biography
qualities. What does the concept of
Martin Puryear showed an early interest
in art and attended an art school for chil-
handicraft mean in our 21st-century Untitled I, 2002. Aquatint etching, 12⅝ x 14 inches, Edition of 40. Published by
technologically oriented society? Why Paulson Press. Courtesy McKee Gallery, New York
dren. In his youth, he studied crafts and
learned how to build guitars, furniture, might people take time to make objects
and canoes through practical training and by hand rather than buying them?
instruction. In 1964, Puryear joined the
Peace Corps and taught English, art, biol- Puryear incorporates the traditions and techniques of a variety of historical and culturally
ogy, and French in Sierra Leone where diverse practices into his work. What can we learn about past or distant cultures through
he became interested in the crafts and their tools and products? What might an anthropologist learn about us by looking at the
traditions of the area. Puryear combines tools and products we create today? www.pbs.org/art21/education/labor/lesson2.html
woodworking skills with a cultivated sen-
sibility towards simplified sculptural Puryear talks about his respect for craft and the role of the craftsman in the creation of for-
forms. In Ladder for Booker T. mal beauty rather than artistic beauty. Are there distinctions between art and craft? What are
Washington, Puryear built a spindly, they? Can an object created for a functional purpose achieve the status of art?
meandering ladder out of jointed ash
wood. More than thirty-five feet tall, the
ladder narrows toward the top, creating a ACTIVITIES
distorted perspective that evokes an
unattainable or illusionary goal. His Create a social history based on a work
sculptures (in wood, steel, stone, and of art created by someone in your
other traditional materials) play on cultur- class. Analyze the source of his or her
ally inspired shapes, creating new spaces skills, techniques, ideas, and final real-
and resonant forms. ization of what he or she has made.
Art:21 Theme After looking at the work Ladder for
time
Booker T. Washington, have students
Online Lesson Library Topics create a portrait of a living or historical
labor & craftsmanship, public & private figure using abstract shapes, forms, or
space, ritual & commemoration symbolic elements that represent the
Media and Materials significant aspects of their lives.
sculpture in wood, stone, metal, and brick www.pbs.org/art21/education/
ritual/lesson2.html
Influences
architecture, Inca stone work, Machu
Picchu, handmade tools, traditional crafts
and craftsmanship, furniture making,
“Other people’s input
boat building
can actually open up
Key Words and Ideas
surface, mass, dichotomy, folly your thinking, to possi-
bilities that you weren’t
even aware of when you
www.donaldyoung.com
were just relying on your
www.mckeegallery.com/artists/
martin_puryear_img.html own, your own sense of
Ladder for Booker T. Washington, 1996. Ash, 438 x 22¾ x 1¼ inches.
what’s possible.” Installation view at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, Texas.
Collection of the artist. Courtesy McKee Gallery, New York.
Photo © David Woo
25
Collier Schorr
DISCUSSION
Before Viewing
What is a tribe? How are tribes created? www.pbs.org/art21/education/individuals/lesson2.html
How would you describe your opposite? Your twin?

Born
1963, New York, NY How do you define your personal space and public space?
Education After Viewing
BFA, School of the Visual Arts, New York, NY Describe personal space and public space in relation to Schorr’s work.
Lives and Works Schorr states, “I am creating a boy’s world, but from the emotional center of a woman.”
Brooklyn, NY If a man photographed these images, would they be different? If so, how and why?
Artist Biography Consider the relationship between Schorr’s images and photographic images found in
Best known for her photographic portraits
advertising or magazines. Describe the similarities and differences.
of adolescent men and women, Collier
Schorr’s pictures often blend photographic In order to confront the myths and stories she learned about Jews and Germans in World War II
realism with elements of fiction and youth-
Europe as a child, Schorr tries to see Germany from different perspectives. How does she do
ful fantasy. Recently, Schorr returned to her
this? Does she create new myths and stories through her artistic process? What are they?
high school to photograph the school’s
wrestling team and began a body of photo- What is a voyeur? How might this term be relevant to Schorr’s photography?
graphs that capture young wrestlers as they
www.pbs.org/art21/education/public/lesson1.html
experience the triumphs and defeats of
adolescent athletics. Of Jewish heritage,
Schorr first traveled to Germany in 1989
with an interest in the history that led to
World War II and the Holocaust. While
there, she was befriended by a German
family. Returning each summer over the
past fourteen years to visit, Schorr has
photographed local boys wearing the mili-
tary clothing and accessories they collect
including an assortment of German, Israeli,
Weimar (Nazi), and Vietnam-era American
Army uniforms. Schorr’s images not only
call into question the role of soldiering in
today’s society, but also examine the way
nationality, gender, and sexuality influence
an individual’s identity.
Art:21 Theme America Flag with Scratch, 1999. C-print, Andreas/POW/(Every Good Soldier/Was a Two Shirts, 1998. Cibachrome, 40 x 30 inches,
20 x 16 inches. Edition of 5. Courtesy of Prisoner of War)/Germany, 2001. C-print, 39 x Edition of 5. Courtesy 303 Gallery, New York
loss & desire 303 Gallery, New York 28½ inches. Edition of 5. Courtesy 303 Gallery,
New York
individuals & collectives, the natural world, ACTIVITIES
public & private space, war & conflict
Consider the profession and history of photojournalism. Research how photographs have
Media and Materials
captured images of soldiers and wartime events from past and present times, and compare
photography
them with Schorr’s images. Create a photojournalistic essay about a current war or conflict.
Influences www.pbs.org/art21/education/war/lesson2.html
gender, wrestling, Andrew Wyeth, military
uniforms, World War II, German and Jewish Discuss or write about how Schorr’s photographs visually represent the following concepts:
social history illusion, disillusion, social and cultural myths, historical truths. Compare and contrast the
works of Kara Walker, Collier Schorr, and Eleanor Antin using to these concepts.
Key Words and Ideas
confrontation, voyeur, tribes, twinship and
opposition
“I can only approach this as a woman, from the outside.
Masculinity has been depicted in very black-and-white
www.303gallery.com/artists/schorr/
indexl.html terms. There never seems to be a wide range of emotional
http://www.apexart.org/collier.htm definitions of men.”
26
Kiki Smith
DISCUSSION
Before Viewing
Mythology often uses particular symbols or
signs that are identifiable and readable by a
Born wide audience. Why is this important? Think of
1954, Nuremberg, Germany particular examples of these symbols. Think of
particular works of art that relate to myths or
Lives and Works
mythological stories.
New York City
Artist Biography Can myths represent both fact and fiction? How?
The daughter of American sculptor Tony After Viewing
Smith, Kiki Smith grew up in New Jersey.
For many artists, the studio is often the central
As a young girl, one of Smith’s first expe-
riences with art was helping her father location for production of their art. It is evident
make cardboard models for his geomet- in this segment that Smith works in many
ric sculptures. This training, combined communal studios with the assistance and
with her upbringing in the Catholic expertise of a range of other artists. How do King Kong, 2002. Bronze, 20 x 21 x 8 inches including base. Edition of 3.
Church, later resurfaced in Smith’s evoca- you think the various studios and her collab- Courtesy PaceWildenstein. Photo by Ellen Page Wilson
tive sculptures, drawings, and prints. The orative approach affect the process and out-
recurring subject matter in Smith’s work
come of her work? www.pbs.org/art21/education/labor/lesson1.html
has presented the body as a source of
knowledge, belief, and storytelling. In the Compare and contrast the commemorative sculptures made by Smith (Pyre), Martin
1980s, Smith’s work focused on the body Puryear (Ladder for Booker T. Washington), and Do-Ho Suh (Public Figures).
in intricate drawings and objects based
on organs, cellular forms, and the human
nervous system. This work evolved to ACTIVITIES
incorporate animals, domestic objects,
and narratives from classical mythology Research, and then write or perform a memorial for a local event or figure in your community.
and folk tales. Life, death, and resurrec- For whom would it be made? What would its design be? What would you say? In what medium
tion are important themes in many of or with what materials would it be made? www.pbs.org/art21/education/ritual/lesson2.html
Smith’s installations and sculptures.
Create a group sculpture that tells a particular story, using only bodies. What is its story, and
Art:21 Theme how will the final work of art be documented?
stories
Write a mythological story to accompany one of Smith’s sculptures. Incorporate the mythologi-
labor & craftsmanship, ritual &
cal sources she draws on as well as your own ideas and stories to create your own myth.
commemoration www.pbs.org/art21/education/ritual/lesson1.html
Media and Materials

drawing, paper mâché, printmaking, fab-
ric and textiles, papermaking, sculpture
using wax, metal and glass casting “I have no
innate ability
Influences
Catholicism, gender stereotypes, body for doing
image, childhood memories, animals, things physi-
dolls, Virgin Mary, medieval history,
witches and witchcraft, St. Genevieve, cally, so I have
(the patron saint of Paris), Biblical stories to really learn
Key Words and Ideas and try to do
mythology, commemoration, gender, it, and for me
transfiguration
that’s the
Additional Images on the Web pleasure in it.”
www.gregkucera.com/smith.htm
www.uam.ucsb.edu/Pages/kiki.html
Constellation, 1996 (detail). 26 various glass animal units, 630 bronze scat units, and 67 glass star units, installation
dimensions variable. Courtesy PaceWildenstein. Photo by Ellen Page Wilson 27
Do-Ho Suh
DISCUSSION
Before Viewing
What makes public art public?
What and whom do public

Born monuments usually depict?
1962, Seoul, Korea
Why do monuments exist?
Education www.pbs.org/art21/education/
BFA and MFA, Seoul National University, ritual/lesson2.html
Seoul, Korea
BFA, Rhode Island School of Design, How does one define oneself
Providence, RI as an individual and as part of
MFA, Yale University a collective or part of a social
Lives and Works group? Debate the pros and
Seoul, Korea and New York City cons of being a part of a collec-
tive or living as an individual?
Artist Biography www.pbs.org/art21/education/
After fulfilling his term of mandatory service in
individuals/lesson2.html
the Korean military, Do-Ho Suh relocated to
the United States. Best known for his large Describe how one creates the
scale and site-specific sculptures, Suh’s work
feeling of home. Is it a build-
draws attention to the ways viewers occupy
ing? A feeling? The people
and inhabit public space. In several of the
artist’s floor sculptures, viewers are encour- close to you? The decoration? Public Figures, Installation view at Metrotech Center Commons, Brooklyn, New York,
aged to walk on surfaces composed of www.pbs.org/art21/education/ October 1998–May 1999. Fiberglass/resin, steel pipes, pipe fittings, 10 x 7 x 9 feet.
Courtesy the artist and Lehmann Maupin Gallery, New York
thousands of miniature human figures. The home/lesson1.html
work Some/One, composed of thousands of
military dog tags, evokes the way an individ- After Viewing
ual soldier is part of a larger troop or military Do-Ho Suh’s Who Am We? (1997) presents thousands of Korean high school yearbook
body. Suh’s work addresses the transnational portraits, composed floor to ceiling as wallpaper. When viewed as a large-scale installation,
individual’s dilemma of home and displace- the individual portraits are lost among the crowd. What are other ways in which the idea
ment. Whether addressing the dynamic of per- of personal and collective identity could be conveyed using different materials or in
sonal space versus public space, or exploring
different media?
the fine line between the individual and the
collective, Suh’s sculptures continually question
the identity of the individual in today’s increas-
ingly transnational, global society.
Art:21 Theme
stories

home & displacement, individuals &
collectives, public & private space, ritual &
commemoration, war & conflict
Media and Materials

fabric, figurines, watercolor, found objects
Influences
urban life, childhood memories, yearbooks,
the military, Korean history, minimalism
Key Words and Ideas

cultural displacement, globalism, national-
ism, autobiography, nostalgia, assimilation

www.abc.net.au/arts/visual/
stories/s437303.htm
www.kemperart.org/exhibits/
pastexhibits/dohosuh.asp
Who Am We? (multi), 2000. 25 four-color offset prints on paper, 24 x 36 inches each. Courtesy the artist and Lehmann Maupin Gallery,
New York
28
Seoul Home/L.A. Home/New York Home/Baltimore Home/London Home/Seattle Home, 1999. Installation view at the Seattle Asian Art Museum, 2002. Silk, 149 x 240 x 240 inches. Collection of the Museum of
Contemporary Art, Los Angeles. Purchased with funds provided by an anonymous donor and a gift of the artist
Yearbooks are a common representation of the high-school experience, changing in subtle “I want to carry
ways over time to reflect the era in which they were created. What are some of the similari- my house with
ties and differences in the contents of yearbooks that were created 10, 20, or 50 years ago
me all the time
compared to the ones we create today? Could you describe yearbooks as public art? Why or
why not? www.pbs.org/art21/education/individuals/lesson2.html like a snail.”
Think back to the segment in which Suh says that from the moment a man is born in Korea
he knows he will be in the military. He also discusses his military service and the dehuman-
ization he experienced. How do these experiences resonate in Suh’s work? Is his work criti-
cal of these experiences?
“I just didn’t want

ACTIVITIES to sit down and
Suh describes his training in the military as instilling a sense of dehumanization. Explore the cry for home.
concept of dehumanization as it relates to soldiering through multiple media including I wanted to more
photographs, war journals, poetry, popular movies, etc., and compose a creative writing
actively deal with
piece based on personal and historic examples of the experience of dehumanization.
www.pbs.org/art21/education/war/lesson1.html issues of longing.”
Create a model for a house with different sections that represent different times of one’s
life, past, present and future. How does the construction differ for each section? How do
the decoration and furniture change? What materials can be used to convey these changes?
www.pbs.org/art21/education/home/lesson3.html
29
Kara Walker
DISCUSSION
Before Viewing
Born What are the implications of making an art-
1969, Stockton, CA
work that reflects one’s culture, race, and
Education identity? Can a person of one culture, race,
BA, Atlanta College of Art, Atlanta, GA and identity make a work about another
MFA, Rhode Island School of Design, culture, race, and identity?
Providence, RI
How are stereotypes created and
Lives and Works
perpetuated? How are stereotypes
New York City
related to the fictional characters and
Artist Biography caricatures that one might see in
Kara Walker spent much of her childhood in movies or read about in books?
Stone Mountain, Georgia where she moved
with her family when she was 13. Walker
individuals/lesson1.html
began her career as a painter, but through
the use of cut-paper figures, she explores Does history represent all of the
the raw intersection of race, gender, and
people who have participated in it?
sexuality. Presenting disarmingly beautiful
Why or why not?
images with provocative content and form,
Walker appropriates the 18th- and 19th- In the 21st century, what are the issues and
century medium of the silhouette. In recent
controversies involved in creating artwork
works Walker uses overhead projectors to
that examines issues of slavery? Are there
throw colored light onto the ceiling, walls, Burn, 1998. Cut paper and adhesive on wall, 92⅛ x
and floor of the exhibition space. When the still slaves in the United States or in other 48 inches. Collection of Jerry & Katherine Speyer.
Courtesy Brent Sikkema, New York
viewer walks into the installation, his or her parts of the world?
body casts a shadow onto the walls where
it mingles with Walker’s figures and land-
scapes. Drawing her imagery from the his-
tory of slavery and the fantasy of the
romance novel, Walker simultaneously
seduces and implicates her audience.
Art:21 Theme
stories

abstraction & realism, home & displace-
ment, individuals & collectives, war & conflict
Media and Materials

paper, chalk, watercolor, light projection,
printmaking
Influences
18th- and 19th-century silhouette art, race
relations, historical archetypes, antebellum
South, Thomas Eakins, slave narratives,
historical cyclorama paintings, Harlequin
Romances, Gone With the Wind, Civil War
era, minstrelsy
Key Words and Ideas

heroines, satire, characters and caricatures,
stereotypes

No mere words can Adequately reflect the Remorse this Negress feels at having been Cast into such a lowly state by her former
www.gregkucera.com/walker.htm Masters and so it is with a Humble heart that she brings about their physical Ruin and earthly Demise, 1999. Installation view at the
California College of Arts and Crafts, Oakland, California. Cut paper and adhesive on painted wall, 10 x 65 feet. Collection of the San
www.renaissancesociety.org/show/walker Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, California
30
Insurrection! (Our Tools Were Rudimentary Yet We Pressed On), 2002. Installation view at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, 2002. Projection, cut paper, and adhesive on wall, 12 x 74½ feet.
Collection of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York. Photo courtesy Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York
After Viewing
Walker speaks about the silhouette as a medium of avoidance because it prevents the “What I have been doing
viewer from looking at the subject directly. What does this mean in relation to Walker’s has been about the unex-
subject matter?
pected . . . that unex-
How have different stories about the Civil War framed our understanding of the events and pected situation of . . .
consequences of that time? How do history textbooks, movies, slave memoirs, and novels
wanting to be the heroine
like Gone With the Wind represent those stories in different ways?
www.pbs.org/art21/education/abstraction/lesson1.html and yet wanting to kill the
heroine at the same time.”
Walker talks about the difficulties of moving from California to Georgia as a child. What does
it mean to be transplanted? Is there a connection between Walker’s move to the South and
her work? Compare and contrast the effects of dislocation in Walker’s work to that of Do-Ho
Suh and his feelings of displacement as he moves between Korea and the United States.
www.pbs.org/art21/education/home/lesson2.html
“In most of my work the
illusion is that it’s about
ACTIVITIES
past events. The illusion is
Rework the idea of the silhouette to create an individualized version of the traditional form. that it’s simply about a
Combine individual figures with others in the class to create a cast of silhouette characters
particular point in history
to perform a dialogue or screenplay addressing a current conflict or issue in your commu-
nity, city or country. www.pbs.org/art21/education/war/lesson3.html and nothing else.”
As a group activity, create a three-dimensional timeline. Stretch cord, yarn, or string across a
room and create millennium, century, and decade markers to hang on the timeline. Have
each student research a particular time period and create symbols or icons to add to the
timeline representing specific incidents of persecution or intolerance that have occurred
throughout history up to the present.
31
glossary abstract art At its purest, abstraction uses
shapes, colors, and lines as elements in and
performance art Public, private, or documented
(for example in film, video, audio or writing),
for themselves. performance art is a nontraditional art form that
The following glossary words features a performance activity by, or directed by,
include both art and non-art allegory The expression by means of symbolic
an artist.
terms. Many of these words fictional figures and actions of truths or generaliza-
have been defined in the con- tions about human existence. perspective A visual formula that creates the illu-
text of an art experience but sion of depth and volume on a two-dimensional
also have nuanced meanings alter-ego A fictional self, different from one’s
surface. Perspective also infers a particular vantage
and additional significance own, in an idealized or transformed version.
point or view.
beyond the definitions pro- caricature A representation of a person or
vided in this glossary. persona A personality that a person projects in
thing that exaggerates striking or characteristic
public, often representing a character in a fictional
features.
context.
collage The process or product of affixing paper
photojournalism The profession or practice of
or objects to a two-dimensional surface.
recording and reporting real and “newsworthy”
commemoration To remember or mark a events using photography.
particular event or person from the past through
picture-plane The surface of a painting or
ceremony or memorial.
drawing.
displacement The difference between the initial
popular culture Literature, broadcasting, music,
position of something and any later position; the
dance, theater, sports, and other cultural aspects
act or feeling of being removed or alienated from a
of social life distinguished by their broad-based
place or people.
presence and popularity across ethnic, social, and
façade The front or public facing side of a regional groups.
building; an artificial or deceptive appearance.
protagonist A leading or principal figure.
fluxus Implying flow or change, the term fluxus
render To reproduce or represent by artistic or
was adopted by a group of artists, musicians, and
verbal means.
poets in the 1960s to describe a radical attitude
and philosophy for producing and exhibiting art. representational Works of art that depict recog-
Often presented in non-traditional settings, fluxus nizable or realistic people, places, or things, often
forms included impromptu performances, mail art, figures or landscapes.
and street spectacles.
ritual A ceremonial act, or a detailed method or
illusion Visually misleading or perceptually process of accomplishing specific objectives.
altered space or object.
satire Exposing human vices or follies to ridicule
installation art A work of art created for a or scorn.
specific architectural or environmental situation.
scale The comparative size of something in rela-
Installation art often engages multiple senses such
tion to another like thing or its “normal” or
as sight, smell, and hearing.
“expected” size. Scale can refer to an entire work
kinetic Having mechanical or moving parts that of art or to elements within it.
can be set in motion; art that moves.
silhouette An outline drawing of a shape or
metaphor A visual or verbal comparison that uses figure. Originally a silhouette presented a profile
one thing to represent another. portrait filled in with a solid color.
minimalism Coined by the art world as a term site-specific art Work created especially for a
to describe a particular aesthetic, minimalism refers particular space or site. Site-specific work can be
to a school of abstract painting and sculpture that permanent or impermanent.
emphasizes extreme simplification of form, often
spectacle A mediated or constructed view or
employing geometry or repetition.
image that is of a remarkable or impressive nature,
motif A recurrent or dominant theme in a sensationalizing its subject.
work of art.
stereotype A generalized, formulaic, or over-
mythology An allegorical narrative often incorpo- simplified type, or caricature of a person, place
rating legendary heroes, gods, and demi-gods of a or culture, often negative in tone.
particular people or culture.
symbolism Something that stands for or
narrative The representation in form and content represents something else.
of an event or story.
voyeur An observer who derives pleasure from
palette A particular range of colors or a tray for viewing sensational subjects at a distance.
mixing colors.
32
going further resources for teaching
through outreach and outreach
www.pbs.org/art21/outreach Promotional Materials
For individuals and organizations who are interested Art:21 postcards, posters, and preview reels introducing
in using the Art:21 educational resources to extend the the Art:21 series and educational materials are available
conversations started in the series, the following list of upon request from Art:21 at [email protected].
ideas may provide guidance. E-postcard, press materials, graphics, and examples of
outreach events that can help extend the impact of local
• Host screenings, panel conversations, town meetings, or efforts are accessible at the Art:21 Web site,
brown bag lunches that invite local figures from your commu- www.pbs.org/art21/events
nity to discuss a particular theme, question, or artist.
Art21 Companion Books
• Partner with local galleries or museums to create an
The book, Art:21—Art in the Twenty-First Century 2 is the
exhibit of local and/or national artists who address
second volume in the series of Art:21 books published by
specific themes or ideas presented in the series or other
Harry N. Abrams, Inc. This 216-page volume has 387 illus-
relavant to local interests or concerns.
trations and echoes the style and philosophy of the tele-
• Use the Educators’ Guide and Online Lesson Library to vision series, presenting the artists and their work without
create educational programs such as docent and staff interpretive mediation through excerpts of interviews jux-
trainings or hands-on workshops for teachers in the arts, taposed with illustrations of their work. The Season One
social studies, or language arts to integrate contemporary book includes scholarly essays written by four different
art into their curricula. authors who discuss the themes, Place, Identity,
Consumption, and Spirituality as well as the artists pro-
• Connect with local libraries to create oral and visual
filed in each hour. Both the Season One and Season Two
stories with young and adult visitors.
books are available where books are sold or from PBS
• Present the series and its resources at an academic video.
conference or organize a conference that includes or
addresses a particular thematic aspect of contemporary art. Slide Sets and Artist Features
Slide Sets featuring Season One and Season Two artists
• Invite an artist or Art:21 staff member to speak at a public
are available for purchase from Davis Publications by call-
event, on a university campus, or at a local cultural organ-
ing 1-800-533-2847 or visiting www.davis-art.com. Monthly
ization.
‘Artists Speak’ features in School Arts Magazine showcase
• Partner with local school districts, schools, or teachers to Art:21 artists and contemporary art ideas for the class-
adapt or create lesson plans or unit plans based on the room. Annual subscriptions or single issues may also be
resources in the Educators’ Guide and Online Lesson purchased from Davis Publications.
Library.
Online Learning Course
• Connect with local science or natural history museums to
Art:21 also collaborates with Davis Publications to offer an
explore the connections between science, natural history,
innovative online course for teachers titled “Identity and
technology, and art.
Place in Contemporary Art” based on Season One. The
• Organize a residency for a featured Art:21 artist. course was designed by Don Krug, PhD, Associate
Professor of Education at University of British Columbia.
• Work with students in after-school programs or summer
To find out more about the course visit:
programs to create artwork that responds to the featured
www.davis-art.com/learning
artists or themes.
• Participate in online discussion forums on the Art:21 Web Additional Sites to View Art
site, www.pbs.org/art21/discuss In addition to the individual artist Web sites that are
included in this guide, the following art and museum-
related Web sites are excellent general resources and fre-
quently have images and works of art and activities for
school and family use. We also encourage teachers and
students to visit local museums and galleries that feature
contemporary art and artists as well as their Web sites.
www.artcyclopedia.com
www.artsednet.getty.edu
www.artincontext.org
www.artnet.com
www.artsconnected.org
www.jca-online.com
www.the-artists.org
33
online lesson library site map
Cover, clockwise from top left: Eleanor Antin The Tree from The Last Days of Pompeii, detail, 2001. Chromogenic print, 48 x 60 inches; Trenton Doyle Hancock Strudi Flooo, detail, 2002. Mixed media on felt, 78 x 127 inches. Collection of Linda Pace, San
summary of lessons at www.pbs.org/art21/education
Subject Area Featured Artists Lesson
Antonio; Paul Pfeiffer Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (6), detail, 2001. Digital duraflex print, 60 x 48 inches. Edition of 6, AP of 1; Do-Ho Suh Doormat: Welcome (Amber), detail, 1998. Polyurethane rubber, 1¼ x 28 x 19 inches. Edition of 5
abstraction & realism www.pbs.art21.org/education/abstraction
Language Arts Antin, Ford, Murray, Osorio, Pettibon, Puryear, Walker Describing the Real
Social Studies Ford, Marshall, Pettibon, Walker Cartoon Commentary
Visual/Perform Antin, Hamilton, Hancock, Hawkinson, Marshall, Walker Looking at Likeness
home & displacement www.pbs.org/art21/education/home

Language Marshall, Osorio, Suh, Zittel Understanding Home
Social Studies Orozco, Osorio, Sikander, Suh, Walker Migrating Viewpoints
Visual/Perform Osorio, Suh, Zittel Model Homes
individuals & collectives www.pbs.org/art21/education/individuals

Language Arts Antin, Charles, Hancock, Kilgallen, Walker Characters and Caricatures
Social Studies Schorr, Suh Yearbook Tribes and Nomads
Visual/Perform Antin, Barney, Hancock, Pettibon The Alter-Ego Saves the Day
labor & craftsmanship www.pbs.org/art21/education/labor

Language Art Antin, Barney, Celmins, Lin, Pettibon, Pfeiffer, Dictators, Collaborators,
Puryear, Serra, Smith Managers, and Soloists
Social Studies Antoni, Mann, Puryear, Sikander, Suh Traditional Crafts, Contemporary Ideas
Visual/Perform Antoni, Barney, Chin, Hamilton, Murray, Smith Converging Media
the natural world www.pbs.org/art21/education/naturalworld

Language Arts Celmins, Mann, Orozco, Pfeiffer, Schorr, Turrell Ode to a View
Social Studies Celmins, Chin, Ford, Mann, Schorr, Turrell Landscape and Place
Visual/Perform Chin, Lin, Nauman, Orozco, Turrell In the Landscape
public & private space www.pbs.org/art21/education/public

Language Arts Antoni, Atlas, Osorio, Schorr Personal Stories in the Public
Social Studies Pfeiffer, Schorr The Face of Fame
Visual/Perform Lin, Puryear, Serra, Turrell Public Façades, Private Interiors
ritual & commemoration www.pbs.org/art21/education/ritual

Language Arts Hancock, Sikander, Smith Re-Making Myths
Social Studies Bourgeois, Lin, Puryear, Smith, Suh Honoring Heroes and History
Visual/Perform Antoni, Nauman, Orozco New Rituals
technology & systems www.pbs.org/art21/education/technology

Language Arts Celmins, Nauman, Orozco, Pfeiffer, Zittel Systems and Styles
Social Studies Charles, Kilgallen, Kruger, Pfeiffer Mediating Media
Visual/Perform Antoni, Barney, Chin, Hamilton, Hawkinson, Lin, Zittel New Tools, New Materials
war & conflict www.pbs.org/art21/education/war

Language Arts Antin, Schorr, Suh Wartime Voices
Social Studies Korot, Mann, Schorr War on Film
Visual/Perform Ford, Sikander, Walker Confronting Conflict
Art 21, Inc.  Spring Street Suite  NY, NY 

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2

EDUCATORS’ GUIDE TO THE SECOND SEASON

Art:21 Education Advisory Council

Art:21 Advisory Council

Copyright 2003 Art21, Inc.

“It’s about how you make representations

of your world, given what you’ve been given.”

Left to right: Walton Ford, Additional Images on the Web

The Online Lesson Library provides detailed

Left to right: Gabriel Orozco,

make art just for art’s sake. It’s a product or residue of

my way of thinking and my belief system.”

• Consider the questions: What is the definition

Left to right: Collier Schorr, looking at works of art or making observations

• Select specific artists or themes that are most

Many artists tell stories — autobiographical, fictional, satirical, or fantastical — in

Left to right: Janine Antoni,

Left to right: Vija Celmins,

The Angel of Mercy, 1977. Eleanor Antin, Myself 1854

“I’ve always felt that

Born When viewing an artwork, do you need to know

Online Lesson Library Topics

Media and Materials

Key Words and Ideas

Additional Images on the Web

Lives and Works What is a visual illusion? What are

Media and Materials

Key Words and Ideas

Online Lesson Library Topics

Media and Materials

Online Lesson Library Topics

Media and Materials

Key Words and Ideas

Additional Images on the Web

Online Lesson Library Topics

Media and Materials

Key Words and Ideas

Additional Images on the Web

Lives and Works City streets or the natural landscape are

Media and Materials ACTIVITIES

displacement, specialization, game reflects your philosophies.

Online Lesson Library Topics

Media and Materials

Key Words and Ideas

Additional Images on the Web

Online Lesson Library Topics

Media and Materials

Key Words and Ideas

Additional Images on the Web

How would you describe your opposite? Your twin?

Media and Materials

What and whom do public

Online Lesson Library Topics

Media and Materials

Key Words and Ideas

Additional Images on the Web

“I just didn’t want

Online Lesson Library Topics

Media and Materials